Maximum Ride and the Clique: Stuck in School
by ColorLikeWhoa
Summary: The Flock lands at OCD school while escaping from Erasers. They meet the Clique. Takes place after The Final Warning. Please read! LAST CHAPTER UP, meaning that this fic is officially COMPLETE.
1. Chapter 1

Our little unexpected stop in New York only happened because- wait for it- Erasers were chasing us. And that's pretty much, the story of my life. Literally.

We were flying high up over NYC, seeing the lights that they had on- even in daylight- flash up at us. Oh, yeah- we can fly. Don't act so surprised. "We" equals my flock. There's Fang, who's 14, Iggy, blind and also 14, Nudge, 11, The Gasman, aka Gazzy, who's 8, Angel, only 6, Total, the flying and talking dog, and finally, me. Maximum Ride, 14. But you can call me Max.

Nudge- Motor mouth Nudge, that is- had wanted for us to stop there, but we've already been there once, and that was one field trip I didn't want to revisit. Not a good idea. So, I led us further up New York. Soon, the bright city lights and traffic noise disappeared into rolling fields, farms and the silent, crisp air. I swear, it was like we were back in Virginia- and that wasn't a good thing. It was so extremely peaceful, that I kept waiting for something to happen.

And then, right on schedule, the Erasers showed up. The lupine-hybrid murderers could chase us anywhere, even in the air, what with their new wings. I didn't even know where the Erasers had come from- I thought they'd 'expired'. That was the white coats- from the School, that is- term that really meant 'murdered' or 'exterminated', but I guess they liked using code phrases. "The milk has expired" and stuff.

"Erasers!" Iggy yelled. He was blind, but had way better hearing than us, and we have raptor ears.

I groaned. Here we go again. "Scatter!" I shouted, and everyone followed suit.

I took a glance over my shoulder and saw them. About 5 or 6. We could take them, easy. I was about to call for the flock to fight, when the rest of the erasers flew nearer. About 100 more- Ten, we could take. Fifty, with a lot of luck. But one-freaking-hundred?

"Dive!" I ordered.

I saw Fang dodge a nearby Eraser and tuck in his wings, dropping altitude quick. The rest of us followed. Erasers were terrible fliers. By the time we touched ground, they would probably figure out how to even dive.

As we got closer to the earth, I spotted a big brown building- a school. But not a School school. A school- ah, you know what I mean.

"Land here!" I tried to make my voice heard over the whistling wind, and one by one, we smoothly dropped down- straight into the middle of a huge crowd of students. In a flash, we tucked our wings into our jackets, so no one took any notice. Then, the Erasers finally spotted us. I could see them, hurtling towards the ground. We split up and wandered through the crowd of students, who were waiting for the front doors to open. If the Erasers tried landing here, they'd just create chaos. I glanced up, and saw them flying away in bunches. Yes, I thought. Mission accomplished.

We met up again, and I told my flock my plan. "Guys. We're going back to school."


	2. Chapter 2

My plan was simple: we go to their school for one day, two tops. There were so many Erasers, that I couldn't take the chance of taking off again, and here was a school. We'd figure out where to sleep later. And as for Total- Fang's backpack. As long as he didn't talk, we'd be fine.

The reactions were pretty much what I expected. Fang stared at me- his version of complete disbelief. Iggy and Gazzy slapped high fives, probably thinking about all the bombs they could set off. I made a mental note to prevent that from happening. Angel grinned at me widely, and Nudge started talking again.

"OMG, school again? Yes! I can't wait to make more friends, and go to class, and learn, and eat lunch, and-"

"We've got duct tape, if you really want," Gazzy blurted out. That shut Nudge right up.

Total groaned. "What about me? I'm starving, and even though I'm obviously of higher importance than everyone else, these school folks don't know how to provide gourmet food, if you know what I mean."

I rolled my eyes. "So, everyone cool?"

I got answers of varying enthusiasm. Good enough for me.

"Angel. C'mon. I'm gonna need your help."

She skipped next to me, hugging Celeste, her teddy bear.

"We're gonna need to enroll, right?" she asked angelically.

"I thought you could read minds?" I answered.

"Just checking."

Yeah, Angel could read minds. She pretty much hit the jackpot on mutant powers.

"Yep, I did!" She did a little ballerina twirl and ran up the steps of Octavian Country Day- well, that's what the sign said.

After 3 brainwashed teachers and a principal, 2 signed papers, and 5 school pamphlets, the flock was officially enrolled in OCD, which was also sharing with Briarwood, the boys' school near, so it was actually BOCD. Like I really cared to know. At least the guys wouldn't have to be separated from us.

"Right this way!" one perky teacher beckoned me, Fang and Iggy to the 9th grade lockers. "Zephyr will be in 4th grade, Tiffany-Krystal in 6th, and little Ariel in 1st." She gave all of us smiles that stretched across her face like only Botox could. "Good luck on your first day!"

"Gee, thanks," I heard Fang mutter, and almost cracked up. But since I was the leader, I smiled at her and said, "Thanks. I'm sure we'll find our way."

Botox-Teacher insisted, so we ended up going through a school tour. Yippee-kai-ay, I thought darkly, and Angel burst out laughing, only to be frowned at by Botox-Teacher.

We saw pretty much what any school surrounded by filthy rich families would have. The latest technology in the Computers room, a Yoga and Mediation class (really?), huge lockers so everyone could fit their designer purses and clothes to change into for the afternoon, and lots of snobby rich kids in clothes they probably had to spend millions on. All in all, I blamed the Erasers for making us land here, out of all places.

I sighed, and then waved goodbye to the rest as Fang, Iggy and I went to our first day of 9th grade. Oh, joy. And please, note the sarcasm.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I spent one hour typing all this up, and then it didn't save. So, I had to type everything back up, but it's not as good as the first time. I hate technology.**

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Nudge was having the greatest day of her life- not counting the time Max let her buy all of Justin Bieber's albums. But that was another story, which had resulted in Gazzy mimicking his voice to perfection (that was his power) and then singing random songs about underwear in public.

Focus, she told herself. Nudge always did that- she got off topic while talking or thinking.

Anyway, she loved sixth grade so far. Sure, her dirt smeared shirt and jeans she'd 'borrowed' from Walmart and frizzy, ultra-curly hair didn't fit it. But she had an amazing sense of style and friends, so that pulled her through.

First was Computers, which was a breeze to her, what with her techy-powers. She'd hooked up a laptop to the main speakers and was blasting all the latest music by the time a teacher busted her. Even so, her great taste in music got her a few friends.

"OMG, you love Lady Gaga too?" one gushed. She looked like the total opposite of Nudge- stick-straight honey-colored hair, designer clothes without any stains or wrinkles, and more makeup than Nudge had ever seen in her life. Nudge both envied her and liked her. A bunch of other girls just like the first came over and Nudge introduced herself. Soon, she was sitting with them in every class and gossiping and laughing like they were best friends forever.

She wished she could go here every day.

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Angel liked first grade so far- it was simple and easy. However, she didn't like what everyone was thinking. They were all snobby, stuck up, and overall every single thing Max had ever thought about rich kids.

Angel decided that she needed to change that. All the kids were thinking really mean thoughts- obviously about her.

Unfortunately for them, Angel could do more than read minds. A little concentrating and eye contact, and throughout the whole recess, she had everyone playing a full game of tag. No one even bothered when their clothes got dirty, or their hair messed up. It was real, normal fun.

First grade was snap.

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The Gasman definitely didn't like fourth grade. He'd come in the middle of recess, which sounded pretty fun, but it was different in this rich school. The boys were playing wall ball, but every now and then they would stop to brush of any dirt on their brightly colored shoes. Wimps, Gazzy thought.

The girls didn't even try to play- they just sat in huddles and talked about girly stuff.

It was, overall, a big snore-a-palooza for Gazzy. So, he decided to have some fun. Before he'd come to the playground, Max had banned any bomb usage for him, or she would "kick his butt into next year," but these were desperate times. One ultimate bomb prank, he thought to himself, and started getting ready.

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Iggy was having a really suckish day. The rich school didn't really care for blind kids, so he was forced to hang on to Fang's shirt all day. Thankfully, Max and Fang were in all his classes, but he still looked like a clingy loser. So, Iggy spent half the day feeling the overwhelming blackness of Fang's shirt. Talk about being emo, Iggy thought.

Then Max and Fang had gym, while Iggy had music, so Iggy was forced to go alone and endure the class. However, it was actually not that bad. All they did was listen to some songs. Iggy could do that. After all, who's better at listening than a blind guy?

Iggy leaned back and relaxed, deciding to get an iPod for his birthday. He could see everyone's faces (no duh), but knew they thought he was a freak by the way they talked to him. He was just_ blind_. It wasn't like he'd insulted them- yet.

They were all just snobbish jerks, Iggy thought. He was better. But how- by being blind? Or having wings?

Iggy shoved off those thoughts and let his mind wander, his ears taking in the classical music around him.

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Fang and I were having just a fabulous time in gym- not. We were forced to play volleyball in their clean, exceptionally large gym with state of the art equipment. Thankfully, we didn't have to change- that would've been really awkward.

All we had to do were play by the rules and make sure we didn't hit the ball so hard it made a crater in the floor- or in someone.

It was a really easy game to play, I soon figured out. All our classmates were snooty rich brats with designer gym suits- even the guys. It was like every stereotype about them come to life.

I glanced at Fang, who really stood out with his emo getup, more than me in my classic jeans, shirt and windbreaker. "Careful," I teased. "Don't wanna ruin your hair, now do we?"

He grimaced at me. "When's lunch?"

With that, we pretty much pummeled the other team and won, without causing any major injuries. Not bad for two starving bird kids.

**A/N: I know OCD is like a middle school, but just pretend they have kindergarten up to 9****th****, kay? **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I FIXED IT! It was all un-edited, and I hate that, so I fixed it! **

**I know, I'm not very nice to Massie and her clique through Max's eyes, but frankly, I don't really like them, and Max probably wouldn't either. Enjoy! Rate and review, please!**

Lunch- my favorite subject. Me and Fang practically raced out of gym and entered the cafeteria. My first thought when I saw the 'cafe' was "Oh, jeez." I'm pretty sure Fang's was a lot more colorful. It looked like Safari Barbie met Clean Freaks United. I didn't really dwell on the theme, though, because then I saw the _food._ My mouth literally started to water. I didn't even care that everything was 'low fat' and 'zero calorie'. Sandwiches, ice cream, cookies, pizza, salad, chicken… it was a bird kid paradise.

"Wow" I said.

Fang nodded. "Let's eat."

We went in the line and immediately realized who was in front of us. Iggy! I tapped his hand twice to let him know it was us. He stiffened, tense, but relaxed when he recognized us. "Hey, Max. Fnick."

Fang rolled his eyes. "I'm rolling my eyes, Ig."

"Hey, what's good? I'm starving." So Fang started to explain what food was there, and Iggy's already foggy eyes glazed over at the mention of all of it. Iggy walked forwards in line, and accidently bumped into a girl with glossy brown hair, a huge purse that could've fit Angel, and overly applied makeup. I swear, it looked like she'd dumped a whole rack of lip gloss on her lips. Disgusting, I know. And I didn't even wanna go through her outfit. About five other girls stood behind her, like some gang or something.

"Ehmagawd," she breathed. I'm serious, that's how she said it. Ehmagawd? Really?

Little Miss Lip Gloss looked offended for some reason. "Are you a traffic cone?" she asked Iggy.

Iggy looked mystified for a split second, but kept his cool. "What if I am?" he replied while staring at her shoulder. He was good, but not that good.

Little Miss Lip Gloss looked even more stunned. Obviously, Iggy had answered differently than anyone else ever had. She continued. "Then why are you in my way?"

Okay: Cheesiest. Insult. Ever. I almost cracked up, and even Fang smirked a little. Iggy had that mischievous grin on his face which everyone learned to avoid.

"Oh dear god, what is that smell?" He said, holding his nose.

Then even I smelt it. It was terrible- it was_ perfume. _I bet Iggy's extra-sensitive nose just loved it- and yes, that's sarcasm.

"You like?" LMLG said to Iggy.

He turned to her and said, "Like? It's sickening!"

"What?" she whipped a hand into her purse and pulled out a little bottle. "Its high quality! Look!" She shoved the bottle into Iggy's face.

His nose crinkled. "Um, what's it say?" he asked, and Fang whispered to him.

LMLG smirked. "You can't read?"

"Nope."  
"Why not?" she said in an innocent way that wasn't very innocent sounding. Like Angel, I thought.

Iggy waved a hand in front of his face. "Maybe because I can't see?"

The straightforward approach, I noticed.

LMLG and her group had looks of horror plastered on their faces. I knew what they were thinking-

'Oh no! I just insulted a blind kid! I might go to jail! But orange clashes with my hair!"

"You're...You're blind?" Little Miss Lip Gloss said finally.

"What did you think?" Iggy said cheerily.

"Ehmagawd." A Latino girl in the back said. I swear, if they said that one more time, I was gonna die of laughter.

"I'm Alicia. And you are?" she continued.  
Iggy looked pretty bored now. "Um- Bob." He blurted out.  
"Bob what?" she said sweetly.

"Builder?" I offered.

Iggy glared at my forehead, which was really close. "No."

Fang looked like he might die of boredom instead. "Come on. The line's moving."

Everyone shifted their attention to him, like he was invisible before, blending into the background. Which, coincidently, was his little power.

"Who's he?" LMLG leaned close to Iggy, which was weird, considering his height. "Oh, that's probably Nick. Yeah, but he loves the nickname Fnick-"

Fang shot him a warning glare, which Iggy obviously missed. He probably wanted to disappear again, but too bad for him no. "Just Nick," he muttered.

"I'm Massie," LMLG twirled a pieced of her shiny hair in her fingers. Way to be subtle, I thought.

"You know me!" Alicia said cheerfully.

"I'm Kristin," a blond said.

"Dylan," a redhead blurted out.

"My name's Claire," said the last, another blond with bangs.

Ah, so the fan club begins, I thought. Not that I cared. 'Cause I didn't.

"You wanna sit with us?" LM- I mean, Massie asked Fang.

I cut in. "No thanks, we're good. Come on, Bob, Nick. We gotta move up the line."

Fang looked relieved. We got trays and piled them up with everything we could possibly fit, and then sat at an empty table- close to the exit, of course. Gaz, Angel and Nudge had lunch some other time, so the three of us dominated the table. I hoped no one noticed Fang tipping part of his tray into his bag for Total, who was still grumbling about being locked in a gym locker.

"So, Fnick, don't wanna sit with your new girlfriends?" Iggy teased.

Fang gave him one of his death glares, which was lost on Iggy, and bit into his sandwich. I dug in too, savoring each bite of my pizza. The food was amazing. I could've gotten seconds- oh wait, I already did. Correction, I could've gotten thirds and fourths. So I did. Hey, a bird kid's gotta eat.

All the rich kids were staring at us, not even hiding it. We were school freaks without even having to flash our wings. Oh, great.

**A/N: And a special thanks to all my readers… HIIIIII, hollercrombie… plus a few others I forgot. Whoops! Thanks for reading and reviewing!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I seriously have no idea where this is gonna go… I only wrote this because I wanted to see what would happen if Max and the flock met Massie and the PC, because they're like complete opposites, when it comes to fashion and stuff like that. I just sat down and wrote whatever I wanted in this chapter. So, any ideas for the next? Seriously, I need your help!**

**I'm sick :( which is why I haven't updated in forever. **

**Oh, and before, in the other chapter where Alicia goes "you know me!" it's because a little before that, she says "I'm Alicia, and you are?" to Iggy. So… sorry if that was vague.**

**Also, I welcome the other Clique and Max Ride writer person… So yeah, hi!**

Angel's first day was getting a little better. She met Gazzy and Nudge at lunch, and all three of them ate as much as they could sneak past the lunch ladies, which was a lot. Gazzy accidently "let 'er rip" as he put it, in front of one, and she actually fainted.

"Sorry," Angel whispered as she tiptoed passed her.

So they all sat together, stuffing their faces like they might not eat for the next two months (which could be true, for all they knew), while Nudge blabbed on about her day.

"And so we talked about all the hottest guys in sixth grade while doing our nails during recess, it was like, so much fun! See look, mine are hot pink-"

"Fantastic, Nudge, now will you let me eat!" Gazzy shot at her.

Nudge pouted a little, but went back to her cheery self as she started blabbering in her head instead. Angel, unfortunately, could hear everything Nudge was thinking.

"Do you know what's next?" Gazzy asked Angel between bites.

"It's 1 right now and school ends at 3, so about three more periods for you guys. I have naptime!" Angel grinned.

_Excellent_, Angel heard Gazzy think. She listened in. Apparently, he'd 'accidently' dropped approximately 15 water balloons over kids' heads during recess, and he still had about 10 more left. Lucky for him, the teacher didn't pay attention to anyone during recess, so Gazzy had gotten away with it.

Just then, Gazzy spotted something in the corner of his eye. He whipped his head up, at the skylights in the cafeteria. Wings. And fur. It could only be one thing.

"I hear Erasers!" Angel called. She could read their minds from up there, and they weren't happy. "We gotta go, fast!"

**I know, I know, cliffhanging endings are bad. But I needed to!**

**And remember kids: if you're friends jump off any bridges or cliffs, don't follow them unless you want your parents to say "I told you so." True story. (Not really.)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Back again! I just split the last chapter and this in half, because I'm running out of ideas and need to give the illusion that I wrote more than I really did (Shhh, don't tell anyone!)**

**I. Need. Ideas!**

Art class was torture.

So, I didn't have a very creative mind, sue me. We were supposed to connect with our 'inner self' and then let it all out on canvas with some paint. Fang had splattered on some black and called it done. It was easier when all you needed was black. And Iggy had a get-out-of-jail-free card, also known as blindness. That didn't stop him from sticking his hands in paint and calling out every color, though.

I had to sit and think, which was so insanely boring, but then I ended up painting a bird. It didn't really turn out the way I wanted though.

"Is that a… boat?" Fang tilted his head sideways to figure out what it was.

I scowled. "No! It's a bird!"

Unfortunately for us, Massie and her gang were in the class too. Massie leaned over me and glanced at my painting. "I think it looks like a boat too," she said. Of course she would take Fang's side. She and her friends weren't even painting- they were gossiping in a huddle and fixing their hair.

I think I hate brunettes more than redheads.

I looked up frustrated, the sunlight getting in my eyes. There were skylights everywhere, letting me see the clouds drift lazily by and the true blue sky. I wished I was flying instead of going through school. And I would've done that, if it weren't for the Erasers_ flying right by our window._

I stood up in a flash. Furry winged mutants, passing by our art room, and probably looking for us.

We had to get out of here.

Fang looked up lazily. "What're you doing, Max?"

I motioned upwards with my head. "Erasers," I mumbled, so low that any normal person couldn't hear me. But Fang and Iggy and I, as you probably already know, aren't normal.

"Sit down," he whispered back. "You're overreacting."

I sat unwillingly. "I know what I saw."

"Yeah, but they don't know that we're here, in art," Iggy chimed in. He stuck his finger in some watercolors and grimaced. "Yellow. With a hint of blue. Someone's been mixing colors!"

Massie whipped her head around and stared at us. Iggy had talked a little too loud. "Who doesn't know?"

"Nothing!" he said hurriedly.

Massie stared at us suspiciously, and then her face smoothed into a smile. "Well, we've been talking, and we'd like to invite you all to this party we're throwing!" She beamed at us, as if we were permitted to start jumping up and down in joy now. "It's tonight, at my house, the Block Residence," she continued. "So, uh, you're coming right?"

I had no trouble letting her down. "Sorry, can't. We're, um, moving back home after school."

Massie's eyes flashed, like I'd made her mad, but then she said pleasantly, "Well, then, how about you all come over before you leave, for some snacks or something?"

I was saved from answering by the teacher, who was staring at a group of guys who'd just entered near the door.

They were all tall and handsome-ish, like models, and were standing with their arms crossed, blocking the door like guards.

"Wow," Alicia said. "They're hunks!"

"Yeah," I muttered. "Hunks of flying _fur_!" They were freaking _Erasers_- in their human form, which unfortunately for us, were like swimsuit models.

I nudged Fang, who immediately noticed them, and tapped Iggy's hand. "Get ready!" I whispered at them.

The group of Erasers zeroed in on us, their faces dark and menacing. They started walking towards us.

"No time!" I hissed. "U and A, skylight, now!" Then, I moved fast, fast, fast. In unison, Fang, Ig and I knocked over as many canvases as we could, causing all the kids to scream in surprise. I ignored them, leaping up on a chair, and watched Fang and Iggy do the same. We jumped up as high as we could, and whipped out our wings, probably giving everyone heart attacks. The room was pretty high, and all three of us were able to beat our wings up and down, gaining speed.

I glanced down. Massie and her friends, all shocked, looked so funny I would've laughed, but then I spotted the Erasers, who had morphed into their huge, ugly wolf forms. They jumped up too; their misshapen wings out, and raced towards us.

"Wow," Fang said. "When did they get so good?"

I stared at the skylight, which was now in front of me. There, on its side, was a handle. I turned it, and the skylight opened up into the bright afternoon sky. "Sweetness," I muttered **(A/N: Yes, I say that a lot, and so will Max if I want her to)**, and shot out, easily fitting through. I heard Fang and Iggy follow me, and sped up, flying away from the school as fast as I could.

Then, I heard a growl. I snuck a peek behind me, and saw the Erasers hurtling towards us at top speed.

**Dun dun dun! I know what you're thinking- SO MANY CLIFFS! I'm sorry, but I'm out of ideas! Again. So accept my free apology basket, it's filled with virtual chocolate bars and gourmet food!**

** Also- I just saw the traffic thingy (whatever, I'm new to this site) and I have SIXTY VISITORS! That's like, soooooooooooooooooooo much! Well, to me, anyways. I'm new, remember? **


	7. Chapter 7

**Bleh.**

"Everyone got the plan?" I yelled over the wind. Boy, I just realized, I have a lot of plans. But, moving on.

There was no time to check if they did. We were under attack- Erasers were gaining on us, swarming towards us like bees. Big, furry bees with bulky wings, that is. And I thought they were gone, forever.

I beat my wings harder, pushing faster and faster. How many freaking Erasers were even there?

About 10, I heard a sweet, yet deceptive voice in my head. Angel!

But wait- what? I'm going crazy, I thought. Last time I checked, Angel was supposed to be in 1st grade, learning it up and whatnot.

Long story! Angel thought at me. Erasers were here, so we left school, and I heard you. Nudge and Gazzy are here too, by the way. Anyways, people should really watch who walks out of a school in the middle of the day. Oh- Gazzy says that if anyone from the school asks about a certain stink bomb, he swears he had nothing to do with it. So, we're ready for a fight!

I shrugged off Gazzy's little add-on statement, because right now, I had bigger problems. 10 Erasers, huh? This was gonna get ugly.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I have completely given up that anyone is reading this. D: So, if anyone really is reading this, I'd feel so much better if you just reviewed. One measly review, please! Anyway, here's my chapter. **

I turned in a split-second decision, lunging down hard and swooping up in a wide arc. I'd moved back, right under the Erasers, and as I brought myself higher up, I raised my fists in front of me, superman style.

"At around 150 mph, this has gotta hurt!" I rammed into an unsuspecting Eraser and knocked him back about 30 feet. The Eraser snarled at me and started flying back, furious. He wasn't fast enough, so I had time.

I chanced a glance around me. Fang was taking on two Erasers, but looking like he was doing just fine. Iggy and Gazzy were trading off in some weird technique they must've made up, but doing ok. Nudge was flitting around the Erasers, throwing kicks every now and then. I spotted Angel, who wasn't even attempting to fight. She flew around, dodging blows, a look of intense concentration on her face, which told me that she was testing her freaky mind powers. Sure enough, after a few seconds, some Erasers near her, including the one chasing me, got these confused looks and started plummeting down, wings forgotten.

Looks like we were handling this pretty well, until, of course, the _rest _of the Erasers came. There were over a hundred. _Again._

I cursed. Where were all these Erasers coming from? I mean, how the _heck_ did they keep finding us? I gained speed, flying zigzags to avoid attackers, and saw my flock do the same.

Ok, I thought. Time to think this through.

Reason 1: They were just really, really good stalkers. Hmm. A possibility.

Reason 2: The chip. But it was long gone.

Reason 3: The Voice-

The Voice. Where was it anyways? I mean, it's a pesky, annoying thing that always tells me what to do at the worst time possible, but it was kinda empty in my head without it. Wow, I never thought I'd think that.

During my little thought session, Erasers had started grouping around us- surrounding us. Oh, *BLEEP*

"_The responsibility of a leader often includes backing down and admitting that sometimes, you can't win." _

Oh joy. The Voice.

'Gee, Voice, perfect timing!' I thought back sardonically.

"_Concentrate, Maximum."_

I rolled my eyes internally. 'What?'

"_You can't possibly win. Below you, I know a place you can hide. Take your flock, I'll handle the Erasers."_

'You sure? You're just a _Voice._'

I thought I heard the Voice sigh, exasperated.

Guess I had to follow its advice. I had no other choice.

'Angel!' I thought as loud as I could. 'Voice told me- tell the others to dive and land below us. Now!'

I gave her about ten seconds to warn everyone and then folded in my wings and dropped like a rock.

I heard air whistle past me, and as green treetops entered my vision, I snapped out my wings, and rose up. Looking below, I saw a ton of trees.

'What, Voice? You want us to land in the forest?' I thought mockingly.

No answer. Not that I was expecting one.

I decided to just land randomly. Who needs the dumb Voice? After touching down, checking on my flock, yada-yada-yada, I got down to business.

"Erasers," I stated bluntly.

"Where'd they even come from?" Fang demanded.

"No clue."

I looked up, through the trees, and miraculously, there wasn't an Eraser in sight. The Voice had been right.

"Uhh- so what now?" Gazzy inquired.

That stumped me. "Well…."

"_Walk forward, northwest, about 70 yards."_

'Are you serious?' I thought to the Voice. I said out loud, "Uh, ok then. I know where to go, flock."

O.o.O.o.O.o.O

"I'm tiiiired," Nudge whined.

We'd been walking for about 5 hours now. I wished we could've just flown there, but I didn't wanna take any chances. Erasers were probably still up there.

"Suck it up," Iggy said. He'd pulled out an iPod (God knows where he got that from) and was listening to it so loud that everyone could hear the music blasting.

Nudge pouted, and trudged forward.

'_Almost there,' _Voice said.

And then I saw it. A huge mansion- and I mean HUGE. I won't even go into the details; you'd get extremely jealous, just like me.

"Holy-" Gazzy said in awe.

I guess we know where the Voice was leading us.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: *explanation as to why I didn't update for soooooo long* Okay, I was lazy. And had writer's block. Don't kill me!**

**Oh, and I kind of don't like Maximum Ride that much anymore. Sorry! **

**But I'm gonna try to finish this story, but review please!**

We stood at the edge of the mansion's yard, still openmouthed in shock.

It took all my self control I possessed not to run around the luscious, green field, like Angel and Nudge were already doing.

"WEEEE!" Angel yelled gleefully, and Nudge laughed, twirling around like a ballerina.

Even Gazzy had joined in, running with his arms out in front of him and making sound effects.

Iggy plopped down in the grass, digging his fingers and toes into the grass. "Green," I heard him murmur.

Fang and I were the only ones left not doing anything.

It suddenly struck me: the Flock was so used to running away, that we'd never really had the chance to just... run. Like normal kids, having fun.

I shrugged. "What the heck?"

I ran into the soft, moist grass. I did cartwheels, spun Angel around, and laughed hysterically.

_Man, _I thought. _I wish we could do this forever. _

Then, Fang, who was still standing on the side, looking unemotional, had to burst our bubble and point out the major problem were in.

"Killjoy," Gazzy muttered as we all marched to the huge front door.

I resisted the urge to stick my tongue out at Fang, like Angel was, and rang the doorbell.

No one answered.

For the first time, I heard a faint beat, like someone was blasting music from inside.

I nudged Iggy, who was still listening to his iPod. "You hear that?

He tilted his head. "They're throwing a party."

Just then, the door finally opened, creaking slowly.

And guess who it was?

Massie.

* * *

"So you guys aren't going on that trip?" Massie asked us as she led us through her house.

I tried to keep my fake smile on my face. "No, like I said. And then Nick here," I pulled Fang to the front, "remembered your invitation, so we came here. We wouldn't miss it for the world." My smile grew bigger.

Fang waved awkwardly at Massie.

"Oh, that's cool!" Massie ushered us into a huge, crowded room. It was like a ballroom from a castle, except with surround sound speakers on the walls and a flat screen TV on the wall, which was playing MTV.

There were tables and tables of gourmet food, lots of sweaty people dancing, streamers, and colorful balloons. It looked like those picture perfect parties you'd see only in movies.

"Get comfortable, I'll show you around and introduce you to some guys, but first, I'm just gonna go change."

_Change? _I thought.

She was already wearing an extremely glittery black tank top, jeans and black high heels. Not to mention, so much makeup it was literally a mask.

I forced another smile and walked further inside, the Flock following me.

"So," Nudge spoke up. "What do we do now?"

I shrugged. "You can go, party, or something. Just stick together."

"Ahh!" Nudge squealed in excitement and bounced around. Then, grabbing Angel and Gazzy's hands, she left.

Iggy maneuvered his way around and found an empty couch in an isolated corner. He pulled out his iPod again. Pretty soon, it was just me and fang. Okay, Fang and I. Jeez, what're you, the Grammar Police?

I stood next to him, awkwardly. "So, where'd your girlfriend go?"

He rolled his eyes. "You're hilarious."

After a few minutes, Massie came back. This time, she was in an ultra-shiny blue dress, with lots of jewelry, and- you guessed it- more makeup.

"Hey, I'm back!" She flashed a confident smile at Fang. "Where did everyone else go?"

"Oh, you know," I replied. "Partying."

Massie gave me a look, like she wished I had gone too.

I glared back at her, but she'd turned back to Fang, ignoring me.

"So, Nick. Having fun?"

"Umm…" Fang shifted his weight nervously. "We've only been here five minutes."

Massie laughed breathlessly. "You're funny. Here; I'll introduce you to the Briarwood boys."

With that, she put her arm through Fang's- who looked as surprised as I felt- and dragged him to another room.

I growled, my fists clenched, and followed.

**Well? Didja like it? Then review! **


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Yes, its the long awaited 10th chapter! This penultimate chapter has mixed teenage hormones, water balloons, and Iggy :)**

* * *

Fang and I followed Massie to go meet the "Briarwood Boys".

"Come on!" she beamed at Fang and ushered him into yet another hallway.

"The Briarwood Boys?" I asked her. "What are they, your school's boy band?"

"You know, Fnick does some karaoke on his down time, you should invite him to sing!" Iggy had popped up behind me, still blasting his own music.

Grinning madly, he dodged Fang, who had tried to elbow him.

Massie ignored us, but I detected a glint of annoyance in her eyes. I tried not to smirk- being annoying was our specialty, after all.

Finally, we reached a color-coordinated-to-death room. Everything was in shades of purple- it was ghastly.

I even saw Iggy shudder as he felt the walls. "Eggplant. It's a puke-ish color," he muttered.

I surveyed the room. There were some boys who did look a lot like they belonged to a boy band, and- you guessed it- Fang's fan club.

The girls bombarded us with a flurry of "Ehmagawd"s and "hey"s, and Massie just smiled, like she approved of their hero-worship.

The boys just gave that affirmative nod they think is cool, and then looked away.

I nudged Iggy. "Want to leave?"

He nodded. "Yes, please. But should we take Fang?"

I shrugged. As tempting as it was, we couldn't leave him to fend for himself! I poked him in the ribs and motioned at the door.

Iggy and I hastily walked out. I heard Fang behind us, making excuses. "Look, I gotta go.. to the bathroom! Be right back!"

He caught up to us as we were heading back to where I'd last seen Angel, Nudge and Gazzy.

* * *

I spotted all three of them, huddled in a corner near the snacks, their hair and clothes dripping wet.

"Hey, Max!" Nudge greeted me. She was soaked to the bone, as were the rest.

Gazzy gave me a sheepish smile. "H-hey, Max."

"What did you do?"

Angel hugged me, getting my jeans wet. "He accidentally forgot all the water balloons he'd stuffed in his pockets, and they fell out when he was dancing."

I rolled my eyes. Typical Gazzy.

Iggy hi-fived Gazzy, and Fang- wait, Fang wasn't there.

"Did you guys see Fang leave?"

"Yes." Iggy said with a straight face.

Angel nodded, as Gazzy and Iggy hi-fived again. "That girl, Massie, found him and they left."

I clenched and unclenched my fists. "That's- That's fine. Just fine," I said through gritted teeth.

"You don't sound fine," she replied innocently.

I took a deep breath. "Look, I'm gonna go find him, okay?" With that, I left, going back to the purple room.

* * *

I finally found the door, which was purple as well. I opened it, trying not to slam it, and peered in. And what do you think I saw?

Massie. And Fang. Holding _hands_.

I stormed up to them, ignoring everyone else's stares. "Nick," I said evenly. "Can I have a word?"

His black, unyielding eyes told me nothing, as usual. "Sure."

I marched out, my head held high, and he followed me.

"What's up?" he asked when we reached an empty hallway.

"_What's up?_"

He didn't even look like anything was wrong. I punched him in the gut. Hard.

"What'd you do that for?" he asked calmly, rubbing his sides.

I didn't know the answer either. My head was swirling with all sorts of emotions: anger, rage, and surprisingly, humiliation.

"What's up is that you and Massie..." I broke off. "I hate brunettes," I muttered under my breath. A hot, boiling tear trekked down my face. What? I _never_ cry. Never. Especially not for pitiful reasons.

"Hey," Fang said. He put both of his hands on my shoulders, steadying them. I hadn't even noticed that I was shaking. "Calm down. Deep breaths." He took one himself.

"Listen, Max." I heard something in his voice- some hidden emotion. I glanced up at him. "I'm sorry." I could tell that he actually meant it. "I don't think," he continued, "I mean, I think- What I'm trying to say is- Well…" He sighed with frustration, running his hand through his hair.

Just then, I heard some screams. "Looks like we better go," I noted.

He nodded, looking a little annoyed at himself.

I was about to leave, but I paused. Turning back, I leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. "I know what you mean," I said.

He smiled, and together, we ran out.

* * *

**One more left! And then I'll be FREEEE!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Oh hi there. I'm finally done! Last chapter:**

* * *

Fang and I ran towards the direction of the noise, and found, to our surprise (ahem, that's sarcasm) the flock.

"What I mean to say is, if you're gonna eat a cheese puff, you eat the cheese puff, not throw it at down a cliff. What a waste of cheese!" Iggy drawled, flinging his arm around Gazzy, who was hunched over, laughing hysterically.

What had I just walked into?

Both Iggy and Gazzy were clutching black cans of soda with an M on them, and practically crying of laughter.

Next to them, Nudge was bouncing up and down with Angel standing near her, both of them holding cans as well.

I could hear Nudge talking about 3 times faster than usual, which was at terrifying speeds. "And then I was like, no, and she was like, yeah, and I don't really remember what comes next and oh my god is that an orange? Nevermind, it's a purple, hey am I talking too fast? Someone tell me if I'm talking too fast because I don't have a good view of myself-"

Angel just listened to Nudge, enraptured, an unnaturally wide grin on her face.

"What happened?" Fang muttered finally.

Massie, who must've spotted him, shrieked and stomped up to him. "Your friends here drank all of my Monster!"

"What's that?"

"Monster's so amazingly good I can't even explain it's like rainbows and unicorns and unicorns riding rainbow colored unicorns exploding in your mouth-" I tuned Nudge out.

"It's an energy drink with tons of sugar in it," Angel exclaimed in a sing-song voice.

They got _high_ off of an energy drink? I didn't know whether to laugh or yell at the flock.

"BOMBS AWAY!" Gazzy yelled suddenly, cackling like a maniac. He was standing on the drinks table.

"No, Gazzy, don't-" I started.

He leaped into the punch bowl, feet first, and with a splash, everyone in the vicinity was drenched in bright red juice, included Massie.

She jumped back, her clothes, face and hair soaked. "Oh my gawd," she yelled. Her makeup was smearing, giving her the look of a drowning raccoon.

I laughed then, and even Fang cracked a smile.

"Leave!" Massie wailed. "Get _out_!"

The flock and I were ushered to the front door by an enraged Massie and her friends. By now, we were all snorting and chortling with laughter.

She shoved us out into the porch. "And don't come back!"

I gave her a mock salute. "Bye. Thanks for inviting us!"

She just glared at me with puffy, black rimmed eyes.

So with that, we marched down the stairs and the pathway, looking like a very strange procession of stumbling and giggling kids.

As we reached the edge of the forest, I could hear Massie screech, "_WHAT HAPPENED TO MY LAWN?_"

"Let's leave," Fang advised. "I'd rather face the Erasers than _her_."

I couldn't argue with that.


End file.
